The NCAA Division I Board of Directors, as part of nine possible legislative changes discussed at its Monday meeting, proposed to delete 153 rules in the handbook.
These proposals are subject to approval of the $2.8 billion House settlement of three separate antitrust suits against the NCAA and the college sports power conferences reached last year. These proposals include compensation for name, image, and likeness, regulation of this compensation, and a switch from scholarship to roster limitations. They also propose eligibility standards and a new legal entity that will oversee the enforcement of updated athlete compensation rules.
The NCAA has said that if the settlement is approved by the NCAA, schools will have until June 15, 2015, to decide if they want to participate in the benefits program for the upcoming academic year. The proposal would take effect on July 1, 2014. According to the settlement, opt-in schools would share $20.5 million annually with their athletes starting in August. This will end many of the NCAA’s long-standing amateurism rules.
According to the NCAA, the NCAA is awaiting a final decision by U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken on whether or not she will approve the settlement. Wilken granted preliminary approval last year and seems poised to push through.
Wilken previously said, “I believe (the settlement) would be worth pursuing. I also think that some of these problems could be resolved if people attempted to correct them. It would be worthwhile to try and fix them.”
In regard to roster limits, which was a topic of discussion during the hearing last year, replacing the existing scholarship limit would increase the number of full scholarships schools are permitted to offer. According to the NCAA, this legislation will double the number of scholarships for women’s sports. The legislation would also reduce the number of partial scholarships or walk-ons in certain sports.
The NCAA also proposed a clearinghouse for NILs and an enforcement arm outside of the NCAA, with “rules that are intended to bring stability and clarity to the NIL climate for all Division I Schools.”
The NCAA has also proposed new rules to stop schools from circumventing the $20.5 million limit. All players must disclose NIL agreements that are worth $600 or more. All agreements made between a player and a third party outside of the school would be reviewed.
According to the NCAA, this enforcement group will “provide oversight of rules relating to the terms and conditions of the settlement, including the third-party NIL cap, as well as the annual benefit cap.”
